At the outset of the world economic crisis in 2009 the representatives of 144 UNESCO Member States met at the Sixth International Conference on Adult Education (CONFINTEA VI) held in Brazil, and adopted the Belém Framework for Action (BFA) to guide them ‘in harnessing the power and potential of adult learning and education for a viable future for all’ (art. 6). Moreover, they called upon UNESCO and its satellite structures to review and update the Recommendation on the Development of Adult Education adopted by the UNESCO General Assembly in 1976. This was finally replaced by the Recommendation on adult learning and education embraced by the UNESCO General Assembly in 2015.